Department for Transport

Airports: Construction

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of plans to expand Leeds Bradford airport in view of the recommendation in the report by the Committee on Climate ChangeThe Sixth Carbon Budget: Aviation, published in December 2020, that"there should be no net expansion of UK airport capacity unless the sector is on track to sufficiently outperform its net emissions trajectory and can accommodate the additional demand"; andwhat steps they are taking to ensure that data are heldon all proposed expansion plans atUK airports.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: Proposals should be judged by the relevant planning authority taking careful account of all relevant considerations, including environmental impacts and proposed mitigations. The Government cannot comment on specific planning applications, such as that for Leeds Bradford airport, so as not to prejudice any consideration of proposals should they come before Ministers in the future. The Government is carefully considering all the Climate Change Committee’s advice, including on aviation emissions, ahead of setting the sixth carbon budget.

Large Goods Vehicles: Inspections

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many heavy goods vehicles subject to roadside checks between 2018 and 2020 had major defects; and how many of those were registered (1) in the UK, and (2) abroad.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: For the period 1 January 2018 up to and including 31 December 2020, the number of heavy goods vehicles found to have a major defect (Category 1) when subjected to a roadside check was 9,008. 5,044 of those vehicles were registered in the UK, and 3,964 were registered abroad.

Driving Licences: France

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byBaroness Vere of Norbiton on 2 March (HL13474), whether they (1) know, or (2) have estimated the number of UK nationals living in France who have been left without a valid driving licence since the end of the transition period for the UK's departure from the EU; and what assessment they have made of the reasons for such licences no longer being valid.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: An estimate of the number of UK nationals in France without a valid licence since 1 January 2021 has not yet been obtained. UK nationals who became resident in France before 1 January 2021 can continue to use their valid UK licences until 31 December 2021. The French authorities have confirmed that a valid UK licence will continue to be exchanged in this period, until a reciprocal agreement is reached between the United Kingdom and France.

Department of Health and Social Care

Coronavirus: Nottinghamshire

Lord Mann: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people have been employedto assist in theroll out of mass COVID-19 testing in Nottinghamshire since lateral flow tests became available in the UK.

Lord Bethell: We do not publish data in the format requested.

Coronavirus: Disease Control

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government what priority theywill give to (1) COVID-19 testing, (2) ensuring that people with COVID-19 isolate, (3) contact tracing, and (4) tracking the movements of people with COVID-19, as part of their strategy for preventing the spread of COVID-19 as the number of cases reduce.

Lord Bethell: The Government has put in place the largest network of diagnostic testing facilities created in British history. NHS Test and Trace has capacity to respond to increases in demand and people can have confidence that if they have symptoms and need a test, they can get one, and get their result the next day. Over 72 million tests have been processed so far and we have the capacity to carry out almost 800,000 tests per day The Test and Trace Support Payment has been introduced in response to feedback from local authorities and directors of public health that some of their residents were struggling to self-isolate as directed due to financial constraints. It is to help ensure that people on low incomes self-isolate when they test positive or are identified as a contact, and to encourage more people to get tested. This will help to reduce the transmission of COVID-19. 86.4% (171,847) of people who tested positive and were transferred to the contact tracing system were reached and asked to provide information about their contacts and 96.6% of contacts where communication details were given were reached and told to self-isolate. This has remained constant for the past five weeks. It is a legal requirement to self-isolate if you have Covid symptoms, receive a positive test result, or are told to isolate by NHS Test and Trace.The vast majority of people are complying – and know that we all have a role to play in getting this virus under control. And for those who don’t, the police can and will request data from NHS Test and Trace to confirm that an individual has a legal duty to self-isolate.

Coronavirus: Contact Tracing

Lord Walney: To ask Her Majesty's Government how they plan to make the COVID-19 test and trace system local by default; and what are the timescales for the changes they plan to make to existing systems.

Lord Bethell: The second NHS Test and Trace business plan was published on 10 December and set out how the Test and Trace service is strengthening its partnership with local government to tailor its response more to the needs of local communities and make the service faster, more reliable and even more accessible. This includes giving local public health teams more control through community-led testing; expanding local tracing partnerships, supported by potentially over £200 million per month of new funding through the Contain Outbreak Management Fund; working with local authorities to support them in providing better support for people who have to self-isolate; and using a shared framework of data, insight and analysis to identify clusters of new infections and potential local outbreaks.

Ministry of Justice

Judiciary: Training

Baroness Helic: To ask Her Majesty's Government what training on domestic abuse members of the judiciary and magistrates in England are required to undertake.

Lord Wolfson of Tredegar: To preserve the independence of the judiciary, the Lord Chief Justice (LCJ), the Senior President of the Tribunals, and the Chief Coroner have statutory responsibility for judicial training, under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, and Coroners and Justice Act 2009 respectively. These responsibilities are exercised through the Judicial College. The judiciary and professional staff in the Judicial College are responsible for the design, content, and delivery of judicial training. Judicial training in domestic abuse is included in family law and criminal courses run by the Judicial College. It is prioritised for induction and continuation training for magistrates and judges. The training reflects the wide-ranging nature of domestic abuse and covers all areas recognised by the Government as abuse, ranging from serious sexual and other assaults, emotional abuse, coercive and controlling behaviour, including financial coercion and control. Training is kept under constant review and is regularly updated to reflect latest developments.

Family Courts: Training

Baroness Helic: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessmentthey have madeof the impact of Judicial College training on (1) practice, and (2) outcomes, in the family courts.

Lord Wolfson of Tredegar: The Ministry of Justice has not undertaken any assessment of the impact of Judicial College training on practice and outcomes in the family courts. To preserve the independence of the judiciary, the Lord Chief Justice (LCJ), the Senior President of the Tribunals, and the Chief Coroner have statutory responsibility for judicial training, under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, and Coroners and Justice Act 2009 respectively. Training responsibilities are exercised through the Judicial College. The judiciary and professional staff in the Judicial College are responsible for the design, content, delivery and evaluation of training for judges and magistrates of the family courts.

LIBOR

Lord Vinson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what level of priority the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) has assigned to its review of the conviction of former trader Tom Hayes, on charges of manipulating the Libor rate; what plans they have to increase the grant-in-aid funding to the CCRC; and what plans they have, if any, to change the law relating to Libor.

Lord Wolfson of Tredegar: As an independent arm’s length body, it would be inappropriate for the Government to comment on the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC)’s handling of an individual case. However, the CCRC Casework Policy on Priority of Cases, available on its website, assigns cases which have been under review for more than two years as ‘higher priority’. Budget allocations for 2021/22 for Arm’s Length Bodies such as the CCRC are yet to be decided. However, the decision will take into account – in consultation with the CCRC – the amount of funding it feels it needs to achieve its strategic goals for the year. There has been substantial reform to the regulation of benchmarks since the 2012 LIBOR manipulation scandal. In 2013 the administration of LIBOR become a regulated activity, overseen by the FCA, and the government created a new criminal offence of knowingly or deliberately making false or misleading statements in relation to benchmarks. In 2016, the EU Benchmarks Regulation was introduced, regulating the administration, calculation and use of benchmarks. The Financial Services Bill, currently before Parliament, amends the Benchmarks Regulation, to provide the Financial Conduct Authority with new and enhanced powers to oversee the orderly wind-down of critical benchmarks, such as LIBOR. The Bill also increases the maximum sentence for all criminal market abuse offences from 7 to 10 years, and this includes the offence of making misleading statements in relation to benchmarks.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Palestinians: Terrorism

Lord Shinkwin: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that the Palestinian Authority contributed to the salaries of prisoners convicted of terrorists offences in 2020.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We are clear that the prisoner payments system should be reformed. The UK has raised the need for reform at the highest levels of the Palestinian Authority (PA), including when the Foreign Secretary visited the Occupied Palestinian Territories in August 2020.

Palestinians: Curriculum

Lord Shinkwin: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that material inciting violence against (1) Israel, and (2) Jews, has been included in the Palestinian Authority's school curriculum.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The UK is concerned about allegations of incitement in Palestinian Authority (PA) textbooks and lobbied European partners to conduct a thorough, independent review of the textbooks. To ensure the final report is representative, the study has been extended to include a sample of textbooks introduced for school year 2020-21. Consequently, the study will be completed in early 2021. We have regular discussions with the EU to encourage them to finalise the report as soon as possible.

Bahrain: Children

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) reports that at least15 children have been arrested in Bahrain since 7 February, and (2) the health of those reportedly detained; what discussions they have had with the government of Bahrain about their release.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We are following the detention of a number of juveniles including Sayed Hasan Ameen, who were arrested for arson, endangering the lives and property of others, and preparing and possessing Molotov cocktails. We understand these cases are pending legal proceedings, and are being supervised by social work specialists. We will continue to monitor and raise these cases if and when appropriate. The Government of Bahrain has been clear that access to medical care for those in detention is provided in line with the constitution of Bahrain.

North Korea: Forced Labour

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that North Korea has been operating a fraudulent scheme to force people held in prison camps to produce coal and other goods for export; and what assessment they have made of the report by The Citizen’s Alliance for North Korea Human RightsBlood Coal Exports from North Korea, published on 24 February, that political prisoners, including children, are enslaved in coal production to enable the development of North Korea’s missile and nuclear weapons programme.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The UK remains deeply concerned about the appalling human rights situation in the DPRK and is aware of reports that people held in prison camps are enslaved in coal production and other goods for export. The UK is unable to verify these reports, but we are clear that the DPRK must address the many reports of continued and wide-spread human rights violations in the country, including the arbitrary detention of its citizens. That is why in July 2020, the UK designated two DPRK entities through the Global Human Rights sanctions regime, including the Ministry of State Security Bureau 7 and Ministry of People's Security Correctional Bureau.The UK continues to call for the complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation of North Korea and remains committed to upholding sanctions on North Korea, working with international partners to curtail North Korea's nuclear and missile capability. UN Security Council Resolution 2371, passed in August 2017, banned all North Korean coal exports. The UK continues to raise with the other members of the UN Security Council our concerns about North Korea's evasion of UN sanctions and the illicit maritime export of commodities, including coal.

North Korea: Forced Labour

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that prisoners from North Korea’s Camp 18 in Bukchang produce at least 8 million tonnes of coal annually; and what assessment they have made of whether exports of North Korean coal are in contravention of UN Security Council Resolution 2375 (2017).

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The UK is aware of concerning reports that people held in prison camps are enslaved in coal production. The UK is unable to verify these reports, but we continue to call on the North Korean government to acknowledge and address the many reports of serious and wide-ranging human rights violations in the country, including the arbitrary detention of its citizens, and to allow UN human rights mechanisms unhindered access to the country.UN Security Council Resolution 2371, passed in August 2017, banned all North Korean coal exports. The UK continues to raise with the other members of the UN Security Council our concerns about North Korea's evasion of UN sanctions and the illicit maritime export of commodities, including coal.

Foreign Aid: Human Trafficking

Baroness Doocey: To ask Her Majesty's Government how they are (1) collaborating with international partners, and (2) leveraging foreign aid, to prevent (a) human trafficking in general, and (b) humantrafficking that involves sexual exploitation.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The government is fully committed to the eradication of human trafficking and all forms of modern slavery by 2030, as unanimously adopted in the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).The UK continues to be a champion within the international system, building on the Call to Action to End Forced Labour, Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking which we launched in 2017, which 92 countries have now endorsed. In October 2019 we appointed the UK's first International Modern Slavery and Migration Envoy to help drive forward our efforts on this agenda. The UK is working with bilateral and multilateral partners, as well as civil society, businesses and partners from academia to catalyse action on Target 8.7 of the SDGs. Examples include our support for international coalitions and UN forums such as Alliance 8.7, the Inter Agency Coordination Group against Trafficking in Persons (ICAT) and engagement with the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights.The government remains committed to using UK aid to help tackle modern slavery, address the root causes and reduce vulnerability. Funding will be focused on supporting the most vulnerable - particularly children, and women and girls. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office programming also includes up to £20m to tackle issues including the commercial sexual exploitation of children and up to £13m for programmes in Bangladesh, India and Nepal which assist women and girls who are vulnerable to trafficking.

Ministry of Defence

Warships

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Royal Naval ships were in commission on (1) 1 March 2009, (2) 1 March 2015, and (3) 1 March 2021.

Baroness Goldie: The following figures reflect Royal Navy ships and submarines in commission on the dates shown: 1 March 2009 - 86 1 March 2015 - 74 1 March 2021 - 78 These figures exclude HMS VICTORY.

Department for Work and Pensions

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Baroness Altmann: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the number of women who did not receive the automatic uplifts to their State Pension under the rules applying from 17 March 2008, and (2) the number of women who failed to claim uplifts due prior to March 2008.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: 1) On the 4 March, I laid a written statement (UIN HLWS818) to inform the House that the Department had formally commenced a State Pension correction exercise on 11 January 2021. The estimates around the number of individuals effected by this issue are highly uncertain and will be continuously revised as the correction activity progresses. 2) No assessment has been made.

Pension Credit: Disability

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that pensioners with (1) vision, and (2) hearing, impairments are able to apply for Pension Credit.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: Individuals wishing to claim Pension Credit can do so by telephone, online or by postal claim form. Within these three options, there are a number of different ways the Department communicates with people with visual or hearing impairments. These include large print, Braille and British sign language options. Hearing loop, textphone and Next Generation Text relay facilities are also available.More generally, people wishing to claim Pension Credit who need help to do so can receive help from family members, friends or voluntary organisations such as Citizens Advice or Age UK.

Pension Credit

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the level of take up of Pension Credit; and what discussions they have had with the BBC about publicising eligibility for Pension Credit alongside advertising to the same group their eligibility for free television licences.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: The Department assesses levels of take-up of Pension Credit on an annual basis. Latest official statistics on the take-up of income-related benefits at Great Britain level, including Pension Credit, can be found in the publication “Income-related benefits: estimates of take-up in 2018 to 2019”, is available on the gov.uk website. As well as regular meetings to discuss Pension Credit and the implications of the new television licence arrangements, DWP officials have worked with the BBC to ensure that the BBC’s letters to all existing free TV licence holders informing them of the new arrangements included information on how to claim Pension Credit. The Minister for Pensions and I are engaging with the BBC to discuss what more we could do together to increase take-up of Pension Credit.

Unemployment: Young People

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to reduce thelevelof youth unemployment.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: This Government is committed to providing support to help young people move into work and avoid the scarring effects of unemployment, as we recover from the Covid pandemic. Our Plan for Jobs includes specific interventions targeted at young people. The DWP Youth Offer and Kickstart are designed to move young people towards meaningful and sustained employment.

Kickstart Scheme

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many businesses are involved in the Kickstart Scheme; and how many 16-year olds have been offered placements through that scheme.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: As of 25/02/2021, there have been around 800 employers and over 900 Gateways approved on the Kickstart scheme. We are unable to provide information on placements offered by age as this data is not currently held centrally.

Employment: Coronavirus

Lord Blunkett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that occupational health services are in place to support people with long-term effects from COVID-19 with adjustments and rehabilitation to facilitate their return to work.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: The Government recognise the important role that OH professionals play in supporting people with health conditions and their employers. In the Health is Everyone’s Business consultation we asked for views on how to increase access to occupational health services that can support people with disabilities and long term health conditions. We are considering the next steps in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and anticipate that a response will be available shortly. Access to Work offers substantial practical support to disabled people and people with heath conditions, which include people affected by Long COVID. The scheme has rolled out a number of easements to ensure that those who are eligible for support can receive it. As research into the long-term health symptoms and impacts of Covid-19 is ongoing, we will continue to monitor and consider the Government’s support provisions and approach as evidence emerges.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Office for Environmental Protection

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration has been given to provisionally establishing the Office for Environmental Protection ahead of the passage of the Environment Bill.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: On 1 March we announced that from July, the Office for Environmental Protection, which is to be headquartered in Worcester, will be set up in an interim, non-statutory form, providing independent oversight of the Government's environmental progress and accelerating the foundation of the full body.

Public Footpaths: Coastal Areas

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to publish the planned schedules for the completion of the England Coast Path.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: Restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic have resulted in some delays to the England Coast Path programme. It is still Defra’s intention, however, to have all stretches either open or with establishment works started by the end of 2021. By the end of April, proposals for 99% of the path will have been published by Natural England. To date 1,483 miles (55%) of proposals for stretches of the England Coast Path have been approved by Secretary of State, 401 miles (15%) of which are already open to the public. As further stretches are ready for opening, this will be published.

Environment Bill

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to publish a revised impact assessment on the Environment Bill which takes into account any further powers proposed for (1) the Office for Environmental Protection, and (2) forest risk commodities.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: An impact assessment was published when the Environment Bill was introduced. The Government has introduced no further proposed powers for the Office for Environmental Protection in the Bill’s progress. We will publish a full impact assessment specific to the amendments that were tabled to the Bill in November 2020 to introduce due diligence requirements for larger businesses using forest risk commodities in the UK. This impact assessment will outline the expected cost to business of complying with the due diligence requirements, taking into account evidence received through public consultation.

Department for International Trade

Diesel Fuel: Import Duties

Lord Empey: To ask Her Majesty's Government why tariffs are not charged on completed diesel generator sets imported into the UK from ‘most favoured nations’ when some of the components that are required to manufacture such sets in the UK are subject to tariffs.

Lord Grimstone of Boscobel: The UK’s ‘Most Favoured Nation’ tariff, the UK Global Tariff (UKGT), replaced the EU’s Common External Tariff on 1 January 2021. The UKGT is a bespoke tariff schedule that is tailored to the needs of the UK economy and UK businesses, reflecting UK interests and our free trade ambitions. In designing the UKGT, we sought to balance a wide range of considerations, such as the interests of UK consumers and producers, our ambitious trade agenda, our commitment to developing countries and feedback provided through the public consultation; to which we received over 1,300 responses from a wide range of stakeholders across the UK. We cannot reliably inform on specific tariffs without the specific commodity codes. The new Trade Tariff lookup tool is a simple way to check the tariff rate applying to a particular product.

Trade: Environment Protection

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by The City of London Corporation and EY The City of London: an ecosystem enabling international trade, published on 24 February.

Lord Grimstone of Boscobel: The Department recognises the financial and professional services sectors not only make an important contribution to the UK economy but also, as the report highlights, play an essential role in supporting and enabling firms in all sectors of the economy to trade internationally. The Department welcomes the report and its recommendations which, as we develop our independent trade policy, challenge policy makers to treat goods and services together rather than as separate policy areas. My Rt Hon Friend the Minister for Trade Policy, the member for Chelsea and Fulham, was guest speaker at the launch of the report on 24th February 2021.

Trade Promotion: Public Appointments

Lord Balfe: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Grimstone of Boscobel on 23 February (HL13226), whether they will now answer the question put, namely, why they have appointed a Trade Envoy for Taiwan; and why they have not appointed a Trade Envoy for the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Lord Grimstone of Boscobel: Trade Envoys engage with emerging and developing markets where substantial trade and investment opportunities have been identified by the UK Government. The appointment by the Prime Minister in January 2016 of a Trade Envoy to Taiwan was based on feedback received from the British Trade Office there and underlined the growing importance of the UK-Taiwan trade and investment relationship. Taiwan offers opportunities for UK businesses in a number of sectors, which was highlighted during last autumn’s UK-Taiwan trade talks, including education, science and innovation. Further proof of this is the number of UK firms that are present in Taiwan. We are constantly reviewing suitable markets to identify where the appointment of a Trade Envoy can be of greatest benefit to the trade and investment aims of the UK, with the Prime Minister making the final decision. There are no plans to appoint a Trade Envoy to  the northern part of Cyprus.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Gambling: Advertising

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to undertake a longitudinal studyto consider the impact of exposure to gambling advertising from an early age.

Baroness Barran: The Gambling Commission commissioned and published a scoping review looking at the feasibility of a longitudinal study of gambling behaviours and gambling harms, with advertising among the suggested issues of interest for that study. Public Health England has also carried out a major evidence review into the prevalence and impacts of gambling related harms which is due to be published later this year.The government launched its Review of the Gambling Act 2005 on 8 December with the publication of a Call for Evidence. As part of the wide scope of that Review, we have called for evidence on the benefits or harms of allowing gambling operators to advertise, as well as barriers and enablers of high quality research.

Broadband

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to theit revised target to reach a "minimum of 85per cent gigabit broadband coverage by 2025", as set out in theNational Infrastructure Strategy, published in November 2020, whether they still intendto use an"outside-in approach" to support full-fibre rollout.

Baroness Barran: We are still committed to the ‘Outside In’ approach. This is why we are not waiting until commercial delivery is complete before starting to build in the hardest to reach areas under the £5 billion UK Gigabit Programme and why we are also looking to prioritise premises without an existing superfast broadband connection, wherever possible.As we committed to do in the Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review in 2018, and reconfirmed in the National Infrastructure Strategy in 2020, we are ensuring that delivery to the hardest to reach parts of the UK takes place in parallel with commercial build.We have already been doing this through our existing Superfast, Local Full Fibre Networks and Rural Gigabit Connectivity programmes, which have delivered gigabit-capable broadband to over half a million homes and businesses since 2018.

Parliamentary Works Sponsor Body

Palace of Westminster: Repairs and Maintenance

Lord Sharkey: To ask the Parliamentary Works Sponsor Body (1) what plans they have to publish all submissions to the review of the Restoration and Renewal Programme received from Members of both Houses of Parliament and those outside Parliament, (2) if they have such plans, when they will publish those submissions, and (3) if they have no such plans, why not.

Baroness Scott of Needham Market: The Strategic Review report, which is now available on the Restoration and Renewal Programme website, includes a detailed summary of the submissions made by Members of both Houses and by others.